Sleepless Nights
by CherryTree
Summary: They never talked about those nights when they held each other in their arms. That was okay, though. Garu was never really good with words anyway. PuccaXGaru, crappy piece but I tried. Heavy T for the ending, which gets a bit steamy


As she gasped beneath him, his touch sending her toward oblivion, he couldn't help wondering what had possessed him to do this.

Don't get him wrong, he wasn't confused about his intentions or why he was doing it, but rather how the event conspired in the ﬁrst place.

Seeing the tangled sheets out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly remembered.

It had all started when they turned 16.

Despite the advance in years, Pucca never stopped chasing him and he never stopped running. It had almost become like a game they played, and more and more often he was starting to cave in and let her win. He'd be lying if he said he didn't secretly enjoy those stolen kisses or how determined she was. Over the years he had learned to appreciate and consider the girl something of a very good friend. He delighted in her company when they hung out with Ching and Abyo, and even when they were alone.

...Not that he would ever admit that out loud.

They sparred constantly and battled it out until Pucca cornered him and stole her prize, which he didn't object to, though he didn't act like an eager beaver either.

Little compromises, so she got what she wanted and he didn't have to show how he truly felt about her.

He'd also be lying if he didn't admit that when she tackled him and straddled him to the ground, he found her to be so goddamn sexy.

To everyone in the village, nothing seemed to have changed too much between them.

Until one moonlit night when he had dreamed of her, crying for him, asking him why he wasn't there to save her, and him not being able to move to help her. He awoke in a fright, frantically worrying until his head ached. He knew he was being irrational and immensely stupid, but he couldn't set his mind at ease until he knew that she was okay.

That horrible feeling had brought him to her bedroom window, searching the darkness under the blinds but unable to see anything. Still not assured of her safety, he dared to open the window and silently slip inside.

There she lay in nothing but her bra and underwear, hair sent askew across the pillows, sweat dotting her brow, whimpering escaping her lips. Then, a strangled whisper...

"Garu!"

Quick as lightning, he was by her side, unsure whether or not to wake her or leave before he did something he would regret.

After more dreadful sobs, he ﬁnally caved and put his hand on her shoulder, shaking her gently and calling to her softly. Sadly she was a light sleeper and awoke as soon as his ﬁngers make contact with her bare shoulder, surprising the hell out of him by launching herself into his arms. Always quick to react, he enveloped her in an embrace, rubbing her back soothingly to stop her tears.

In all his memories of her, he had never seen her cry like this.

Eventually her sobs faded into sad whimpers, yet he still held her. Her tears stained his shirt, but he didn't care; rather, he was more concerned with the girl's well-being.

Daring to break the silence, he spoke.

"Pucca?" He asked gently.

"Y-Yes?" She replied, voice still shaky from her crying.

"What were you dreaming about?" It was a ghost of a whisper, hard to detect, but she had caught it.

"I was kidnapped, waiting for someone to ﬁnd me and save me, but...no one ever came."

He knew Pucca had left out who it was in purpose, but he knew, and from the whimpers of his name it wasn't hard to tell.

It was him.

They had the same dream, and felt the same way. The thought sent him reeling. Was that even possible? And if so, what did that mean for them?

Realization dawned in her face at his torn expression. She didn't ask why he was in her room or how he had known about her bad dream.

Uttering the only words he could think of, he tried to reassure her.

"It's okay, I'm here now. You're safe, I promise."

Garu was never a man of many words, but he sure as heck used them to whisper sweet nothing's into her ear until both had fallen asleep. He left at dawn, not bothering to leave a note or any indication that he was there at all.

When they saw each other again, they didn't speak a word about that night. It was like an unspoken rule.

They would continue as if nothing had happened and act the same, her chasing him to the ends of the earth and him pretending to be annoyed.

Every night though, while most of the village slept and an unbreakable peace settled over the village, he visited her. No words were spoken as they embraced, limbs tangling together as they found comfort in each other's arms.

They never spoke of it in fear of ruining it, carrying on with their daily lives.

But he knew exactly why he kept appearing at her window every sleepless night. Somewhere between all the forced kisses, never-ending chases, and rescues, he had fallen for the girl with the twin buns. And although he refused to say it, he knew that deep down he wanted her as his own.

Which left him in a ﬁx. How could he make her his without suspicion of false confessions? He hoped for a push, for something that could help him.

Well, be careful what you wish for.

On this particular night, pouring rain hit his window as he squirmed in bed. He's too ashamed to say it, but he had dreamed of her. Not like the ﬁrst time, but quite the opposite.

To be frank, he had dreamed of screwing her.

He winced at the thought. Pucca had too much good things going for her for him to sully her good name with such an idea.

Still, despite the rain that usually prevented him from seeing her, he couldn't resist anymore.

He knew he was being foolish and she would never be able to look at him the same way again, but he'd be damned if he was ever going to fall asleep like this. He didn't bother trying to calm himself down before he left. That would take far too long, and maybe the rain would cool him down, anyway.

Of course, as luck would have it, he was still hard as a rock by the time he reached Pucca's window. He thought about trying to ﬁnd a way to cover himself and settled for rolling over to lay on his side next to her instead of their usual spooning.

When he saw her though, all thoughts of keeping his distance ﬂew out the window with the pouring rain.

She had been expecting him as always, but this time she had went as far as to dress in a black see- through V-neck long sleeve and a black cherry-printed thong, hair down as always. She lay on her stomach in that common girl pose, playing with her ﬁngers. When he stepped in, she perked up, though not moving, giving him a nice view of her exposed ass.

God, he was looking at her like she was a common slut, but he couldn't help it. She certainly didn't seem to mind his gaze, sending him a coy smile.

He gulped.

Damnit, this was not helping!

Standing, she crept towards him, making him notice her hips as they swayed in such an enticing manner.

Deciding to break him from his stupor, Pucca gently touched his arm; a ﬂeeting and teasing touch.

He couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Sorry." He whispered before claiming her lips in a passionate kiss, pushing her onto the bed, only stopping to remove her shirt. Caught off guard, she yelped in surprise, allowing him access to her wet cavern. Once her shirt was removed, he moved his hands to unclasp her bra as well. He hesitated to touch her bare breasts however, letting his hands drop to his sides, breaking the kiss to gaze meaningfully into her eyes.

He knew this was wrong, taking advantage of her without telling her how he truly felt. Try as he might, he just couldn't bring himself to violate her with his touch until she knew that it just wasn't about sex.

As he looked into her eyes, he saw the lust slightly clouding them, but also the love she had for him and him only. Taking this as the initiative, he told her the words he had been keeping so close to his heart.

"I love you."

**XXX**

**A/N: Well, that happened.**

**In case you haven't noticed, I ship a ton of things, and believe me when I say if I watch or read something, I will find characters to ship even if it isn't canon. Maybe it's just the hopeless romantic in me. Anyway, just a little note for those who are following me: expect everything from Lucifendi (Mystery Room) to Nod and M.K. from Epic. If you've seen my favorites list, you know I'm not joking.**

**This was finished in less than one hour, a new record for me. Eh, I blame the fact that pulled an all-nighter just so I could word this right. I'm actually pretty confident in this, but knowing myself, this is probably my worst one. XD It's hard to write for characters that have no way to voice how they feel and all that jazz.**

**And yes, for anyone following Farewell, My Love, I'm already opening up and fixing my emulator as I write this, so expect some of that tomorrow, if not today.**


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